When Caught in a Lie

Double down and then triple down. Once again, the Guardian demonstrates why the media is held in such contempt. The press went into overdrive in painting the Covington Catholic boys as aggressors, whereas the video evidence told an entirely different story. Yet here we have the Guardian still trying to peddle the lie as if little things like hard evidence mean nothing at all.

The whole article is an attempt to paint Nathan Phillips as some sort of victim here. Yet the man is a liar – a liar proven by the video evidence. He was caught in a lie of omission regarding his military career – such as it was. The “Vietnam Vet” meme was pure fabrication. Phillips didn’t exactly say that, of course. He used plausible deniability by claiming that he was a Vietnam times vet. He would have known full well how that would be picked up by journalists who are so lazy and incompetent that they wouldn’t bother to actually do any research into the refrigerator repair man who went nowhere near Vietnam but did go AWOL on more than one occasion. Yet still the Groan is portraying him as some sort of saint.

But this – this egregious scummy comment takes the biscuit:

Phillips’ initial intention was to step between the students and Black Israelites, sing and retreat. But as he approached the students, the situation felt more volatile. “That’s when I had a conscious thought of: we’re in a dangerous situation here.”

Philips says he then looked for a gap in the crowd and saw an opening on the steps heading up towards the monument. He looked down to find his footing. When he looked up again, he found himself face-to-face with a young man: Nicholas Sandmann.

(For his part, the teenager said “I never felt I was blocking the Native American protester. He never made any attempt to go around me. It was clear to me that he had singled me out for a confrontation, although I’m not sure why.”)

Watch the video. Sandmann was approached by Phillips and simply stood there, clearly confused and unsure how to react. There was no danger, there was no confrontation until Phillips instigated one. Nothing happened!

Some of the students facing him got riled up – some chanting, others jumping, more than a few tomahawk chopping.

Again, watch the video – they were joining in. At least one boy is heard asking what is happening, so there was some confusion among the group. Not one boy is showing any sign of being riled up.

Phillips still carries anger, trauma and pain, but he says he’s ready to forgive Sandmann and those who he feels have done him wrong.

Sandmann didn’t do anything wrong. Nor did any of the other boys. The video is proof of this. There is nothing for him to forgive. Phillips could, of course, apologise for being the aggressor and for smearing them and seek their forgiveness just as he could apologise to those who actually did serve in Vietnam for attempting to pass himself off as a Vietnam vet through his lie by omission, but I won’t hold my breath.